Confirming his involvement with Marvel's Phase Two slate overall, Marvel Studios has issued a statement in regards to Joss Whedon's return to helm The Avengers sequel and more!

Following Disney's big announcement that Joss Whedon will once again write and direct the followup to the third-highest-grossing film of all-time, Marvel's The Avengers, the studio has issued a statement via HitFix. Detailing an "exclusive" deal, confirming involvement with Phase Two installments, the statement reads:

“Joss Whedon has signed an exclusive deal with Marvel Studios for film and television through the end of June 2015. As part of that deal, Whedon will write and direct Marvel’s The Avengers 2 as well as help develop a new live action series for Marvel Television at ABC. He will also contribute creatively to the next phase of Marvel’s cinematic universe.”

Considering the statement notes that Whedon will only “help develop” the unnamed television series, we can assume he won't exactly helm the project. And also, while he's contributing “creatively” to phase two, this could mean he'll be “doctoring” the scripts for Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and especially Guardians of the Galaxy; similar to doing so in the late first phase. What do you think?

Marvel Studios and has already entitled their highly-anticipated sequel to the No. 3 highest grossing film of all time, “Marvel's The Avengers,” as another “big cinematic event.” And expected to feature the reassembly of iconic Marvel super heroes Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Nick Fury taking on a new threat, new additions to the superhero team up of a life time are promised.

Expectantly starring Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson, and directed by Joss Whedon from a screenplay by Joss Whedon, “Marvel’s The Avengers” sequel is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series “The Avengers,” first published in 1963 and a comics institution ever since. Targeted for release in 2015, the film is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. In addition to the sequel, Marvel Studios will release a slate of films based on the Marvel characters including “Iron Man 3” on May 3, 2013; “Thor: The Dark World ” on November 8, 2013; “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” on April 4, 2014; and “Guardians of the Galaxy” on August 1, 2014.

DISCLAIMER: ComicBookMovie.com is protected from liability under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions. This post was submitted by a volunteer contributor who has agreed to our Code of Conduct. CBM will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please contact us for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. Learn more about our copyright and trademark policies HERE. [LESS]